The art of layering and collage
After years of designing, I’ve layered, collaged, and mixed colors digitally every day. Mixed media art shows how artists express themselves with both mind and hands. In painting studios, artists often experiment with 3D surfaces by gluing materials like stiffened paper or fabric to create otherworldly textures.
Collage art has been popular amongst many artists. Famous collage artists include Matisse, Picasso, Paul Klee, and many other artists who experimented with mixed media work. Collage art gets your hands working as well as your mind.
Art Layering is a skill many graphic designers need to know how to do well. Combining many different styles, colors and textures can be difficult to make look cohesive and as though they belong. It is not only a way to create art but a way to brainstorm creatively.. A well collaged graphic or design can create an interesting and fascinating way to present complex boring information. In addition to text or informational content a graphic can hold someone’s focus and want them to learn more.
Collage is an art form for the bold, for rebels who are not afraid of producing art. Collage art and mixing styles can give you an edge in producing creative graphics and developing a unique style. We want to encourage you to. experiment with collage and designing with different styles, colors, textures, shapes. Define your own art, be unique and not afraid of combining several different styles to create a new and interesting design.
Collage—derived from the French word coller, meaning “to glue”—has evolved from a humble craft into a legitimate art form embraced by major movements like Cubism, Dada, and Pop Art. From fine art to handmade scrapbook pages, collage paper art invites experimentation, storytelling, and texture like no other medium.
Whether you're a mixed media artist, crafter, scrapbook lover or simply love using scrapbook papers to create visual journals, learning from the pioneers of collage can spark fresh creativity.
Influential Collage Artists to Know
Hannah Höch (1889–1978)
A Dada pioneer and one of the first to use photomontage in political art, Höch challenged gender norms and societal expectations. Her surreal, paper-based compositions still inspire feminist and activist collage work today.
Kurt Schwitters (1887–1948)
Known for his Merz collages, Schwitters repurposed found objects, bus tickets, and newspapers into abstract yet poetic compositions—making him a patron saint of junk journaling.
Romare Bearden (1911–1988)
Blending painted surfaces with torn photographs and patterned paper, Bearden depicted African American culture and music through collage with vibrant narrative power.
Jess Collins (1923–2004)
Known simply as "Jess," he created intricate “paste-ups” from old magazines and books, exploring themes of mythology and pop culture..
Barbara Kruger (b. 1945)
With bold type layered over black-and-white imagery, Kruger’s conceptual photomontages question media, power, and identity. Her work is an early form of visual meme.
Matisse (1869–1954) – “Painting with Scissors”
Bright Colors and Simple Shapes
Late in life, Matisse created a series of vibrant paper cut-outs, often considered the roots of modern collage art.
Basics on How to Layer & Collage
Step 1: Choose a theme, color palette, or unifying element.
Step 2: Select focal pieces that you love (e.g., birds, florals, faces)
Step 3: Add background textures (text pages, patterns, brush strokes) Find artwork to print or pre-printed art books.
Step 4: Layer with intention — overlap, tear edges, leave negative space, experiment with positioning of elements.
Step 5: Finally, remember to Seal your work of art. Take a photo, or scan your work to have a digital copy to share with others.
Your Style, Your Voice, and some ideas for making collage art
Remix classic collage styles with modern materials.
Use old materials, and new materials that are created from recycled ones, and mix in paper, cloth., wood, lace. Magazine cutouts, junk mail text cutouts.
Incorporate a 3D elements.
